Chapter 161: A New Member Joins the Group
Time passed day by day.
One thing that caught Ryū somewhat off guard was how smoothly Quest ② had ended up going — far smoother, in fact, than Quest ① ever had been.
He hadn't expected that a single show of force would leave such a deep impression on this world's people that the vast majority of them simply… folded. No resistance, no prolonged negotiation — just quiet agreement.
Which meant the Qin Special Zone outlined in Quest ② could now officially break ground.
Honestly? A little hard to believe.
Suspiciously smooth.
But the more he thought about it, the more sense it made.
Because what they'd witnessed — Ryū, Tatsumaki, Whitebeard, and Kizaru — had been a level of power with no visible ceiling. Whitebeard's single 200-metre tsunami alone had reduced an entire coalition to silence. On any coastline, a wave like that wouldn't just threaten one city.
It would be a walking nuclear option.
And nobody knew whether that was even close to his full strength.
If it wasn't — that was frankly more terrifying.
A single individual capable of ending human civilisation at will.
Given that all it took to avoid that fate was ceding a small special zone — one that wasn't even their territory to begin with — there really wasn't any psychological barrier to cross. The land wasn't exactly scarce.
As for that one certain small nation that had no say in the matter: they could just suffer in silence.
* * *
[Group Quest ②: Assist the world of Qin's Moon in establishing an other-world special zone within the world of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure (Fan Version), and secure recognition from 80% of that world's nations.
Quest Complete! Click the link → [Link] to claim your 20,000 Point reward!
Group Quest ③ remains incomplete. Group Admin "RawrSoFierce," and members "Edward Newgate," "Terrible Tornado," "Admiral Kizaru," and "Ying Zheng The Sovereign" — keep up the good work!]
Ryū stared at the completion notification when he woke up that morning.
What could he say.
These people were spineless.
Was it really so hard to show even a little backbone? The whole thing had barely lasted two weeks.
…Though, on reflection, he also understood perfectly well.
For people like them, backbone was a luxury.
Why hold the line when there was nothing in it for you?
Profit first, principles second.
What a world.
He loved it.
* * *
RawrSoFierce: Way smoother than I expected. Quest ② is done — 20,000 Points claimed, balance finally cracked 30,000. First time I've ever been over 30k. 🎉
RawrSoFierce: [Image] 20,000 Points received. Balance: 30,000+.
Back when Ryū had been running the operation in Kaguya-sama's world — taking down that transmigrator with the overpowered system — his total payout had only come to a bit over 10,000 Points. And the bulk of that had come from the transmigrator's Doomsday Fabrication System itself; the system alone had been worth 10,000+ Points as a recovered asset.
Now, just two completed Quests in, and his balance was already past 30,000.
It felt almost unreal.
He took a screenshot of the completion notification and posted it to the group.
RawrSoFierce: Quest ② is wrapped up. Now it's Ying Zheng's show. That said — if anyone over there still wants to start trouble or try anything funny, I don't mind paying them another visit.
RawrSoFierce: [Image] 20,000 Points in hand, balance over 30,000!
Admiral Kizaru: Same, broke 30,000 myself~ Points really don't come easy, do they~
Kaguya-sama: Shut. Up. You shameless old geezer. Have you spared a single thought for those of us sitting here with a balance of 300? How DARE you say Points don't come easy. The nerve.
Kaguya-sama: I am so jealous. So envious. My eyes have turned completely green. 😭😭😭
Eternally Seventeen: At least Little Kaguya has 300. This Lady has a grand total of… 30. 30!! These sign-ins are RUINING MY LIFE. RUINING MY YOUTH.
RawrSoFierce: Wasn't your youth over several thousand years ago?
Eternally Seventeen: No. This Lady is seventeen. Precisely seventeen. Eternally.
RawrSoFierce: I have never in my life witnessed such breathtaking shamelessness.
Ying Zheng The Sovereign: I have never in my life witnessed such breathtaking shamelessness.
Admiral Kizaru: I have never in my life witnessed such breathtaking shamelessness.
Eternally Seventeen: You dare mock the great Permissions Hound? Impressive. This Lady will stuff every last one of you into the Shadow Box — and then you'll learn precisely what it means to fly~
[Ding! "I'm Rolling In It" has joined the Dimensional Chat Group!]
The notification cut off Yukari mid-threat.
She'd been genuinely working herself up — fingers already flexing toward her moderator tools — when the ping derailed her completely.
"I'm Rolling In It"? A new member? With a handle that blunt?
Yukari's expression went very still.
Because she'd just noticed that at this particular moment — when she was extremely, conspicuously broke — someone called "I'm Rolling In It" had chosen to show up. If that wasn't a pointed remark, she didn't know what was.
Clearly aimed directly at Yakumo Yukari, even if the new arrival had absolutely no idea who she was.
I'm Rolling In It: Hey! Which genius cooked up this fancy tech? Feels pretty interesting — neural interface networking, is that what this is?
I'm Rolling In It: Though I gotta say, a little presumptuous of you, letting something like this just waltz right into Uncle Tony's head. In broad daylight.
I'm Rolling In It: You do know Uncle Tony's brain is worth a lot of money, right?
I'm Rolling In It: JARVIS, flag this thing as a virus and purge it.
I'm Rolling In It: …JARVIS??
I'm Rolling In It: …JARVIS??
I'm Rolling In It: …
Eternally Seventeen: Oh my~ Sounds like our new arrival might be a somewhat older gentleman~
Kaguya-sama: And quite possibly a very, very wealthy one.
Crazy Diamond: Question is whether he's as wealthy as Little Kaguya's family.
Kaguya-sama: Pfft… you say that like you're the poor one here, but our Admin literally told you that you're set to inherit a massive fortune down the line!
Crazy Diamond: That's never happening. I've already decided I'm going to find a way to keep the old man around for a few hundred, maybe a few thousand years. Which means I'm stuck being broke for at least that long. Sob.
I'm Rolling In It: …So you people are the development team behind this thing? Looks like quite the operation. Interested in Uncle Tony's investment? Fine, fine — I'll admit, any system that can shut out JARVIS is genuinely impressive. Uncle Tony will condescend to purchasing a 90% stake.
I'm Rolling In It: One hundred million dollars. American. Not enough? Add another hundred million.
RawrSoFierce: …You've got the wrong idea.
When the new member first joined, Ryū had spent a solid few minutes genuinely puzzled by the handle.
The multiverse was full of wealthy people. Heiresses and young masters, emperors and princesses and royal heirs — all of them rolling in it by any reasonable standard.
But the moment he read "Uncle Tony," the confusion evaporated instantly.
Rich. Goes by Tony. Calls himself "Uncle Tony" with zero self-consciousness.
There was only one person that could possibly be: Tony Stark. Iron Man. The Marvel universe.
Ryū dimly remembered that in Avengers: Endgame — Tony had snapped, hadn't he? Doctor Strange had raised one finger. Tony had said his line. He'd grabbed the Stones, he'd done the snap—
—and that was that.
Doctor Strange, standing there: …??
My cue line. I hadn't even delivered it yet.What are you doing.
Ryū shelved the tangent.
He looked at Tony Stark's messages in the group chat, exhaled a quiet laugh, and tagged him.
RawrSoFierce: @I'm Rolling In It — Suggest you pull up the Group Announcement. There's a little red dot in the upper right corner. Read it first, then you'll understand what you're dealing with.
RawrSoFierce: And I won't sugarcoat it — even your net worth multiplied by ten wouldn't be enough to buy this Chat Group.
I'm Rolling In It: …Uncle Tony can't afford it? Are you joking?
I'm Rolling In It: So this thing is called the Dimensional Chat Group? Fine. And you think just telling me to look at some 'Group Announcement' means I'll actually go look? Don't make me laugh. Uncle Tony's favourite thing in the world is saying No to people who think they've already won.
Kaguya-sama: So we've got ourselves a certified chatterbox. And one who's actively baiting the Admin, no less.
Kaguya-sama: Honestly, the fact that Admin hasn't muted him yet is remarkably patient. [hand-over-face emoji]
Eternally Seventeen: Patient doesn't begin to cover it. This is unprecedented restraint.
RawrSoFierce: Give it a moment… let the mute ripen a little longer…
Crazy Diamond: Pfft—
Crazy Diamond: Speaking of which — why has the new guy suddenly gone quiet?
Terrible Tornado: Probably reading the Group Announcement. Given what just happened — well. Classic reversal.
Wandering Little Planet: It seems no one ever truly escapes the gravity of the truth.
"…"
Several minutes passed.
Then Tony Stark resurfaced.
I'm Rolling In It: Hold on. This has to be fake. Tell me this is a joke, because Uncle Tony does not accept realities that don't make scientific sense.
I'm Rolling In It: How can something like this even exist?!
Kaguya-sama: And here we have it — the classic new member milestone: One Thousand Questions From A Confused Newcomer.
RawrSoFierce: @I'm Rolling In It — Want to know if it's real or not?
[Group Admin "RawrSoFierce" has sent a designated red envelope, recipient: "I'm Rolling In It."]
RawrSoFierce: All you have to do is tap it.
I'm Rolling In It: …Fine. I'll try.
I'm Rolling In It: …Huh.
I'm Rolling In It: !!!
I'm Rolling In It: Spatial transfer of a physical object?! That's not just beyond current technology — that's beyond current theoretical physics. Unbelievable. Impossible. …
☆☆☆
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